Glenn Close

Actor

Born: 19 March 1947

Birthplace: Greenwich, Connecticut

Best known as:

Oscar-winning star and lead in TV's Damages

Glenn Close is the Tony- and Emmy-winning star of the television series Damages. A big-screen star since the 1980s, she is best known for her portrayals of villains, from the crazed lover in Fatal Attraction (1987) to Cruella De Vil in the live-action version of 101 Dalmations (1996). Close is a 12th generation New Englander, educated in Africa, Switzerland and the U.S. She studied acting at the College of William and Mary, and made her New York stage debut in 1974. Her movie debut, playing Robin Williams's mother in The World According to Garp (1982), earned her an Oscar nomination. It was the first of a string of critically acclaimed performances during the 1980s, including five more Oscar nominations, for The Big Chill (1983, with Jeff Goldblum), The Natural (1984, with Robert Redford), Fatal Attraction (1987, with Michael Douglas), Dangerous Liaisons (1988, with John Malkovich) and Albert Nobbs (2011, with Janet McTeer). Close has had equal success on the stage and is the winner of three Tony Awards -- The Real Thing (1984), Death and the Maiden (1992) and Sunset Blvd. (1995). And she's no stranger to television, an Emmy winner for 1995's Serving in Silence: The Margarethe Cammermeyer Story), she's also a two-time winner for the series Damages (2007-2012).

Extra credit:

She was nominated for an Emmy for her one season (2005) on The Shield (starring Michael Chiklis)... A talented singer, Close traditionally sings the national anthem for the New York Mets home opening-day game... In the movies, she has been the U.S. vice president (1997's Air Force One, with Harrison Ford) and the First Lady (1996's Mars Attacks, with Jack Nicholson).